It’s been a long 25 years — or an all too short 25 years, depending on your stance — since the UK last hosted Eurovision. But following Sam Ryder’s meteoric rise through the leaderboard at last year’s final, the UK is set to host the annual song contest on behalf of Ukraine, 2022’s first-place winner.
Eurovision is all about celebrating music, culture, and customs from around the world — and in keeping with the noblest of Great British traditions, you might want to throw a fabulous Eurovision party. Well, we’ve got you covered.
Whether you reminisce fondly on the days of Bucks Fizz or you’re a fresh-faced newbie as green to the scene as Måneskin, you’re in safe hands. These are our four top tips for celebrating a home-turf Eurovision in style.
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Serve up some themed food
Rule number one is that you’ve got to have grub. No, we’re not talking English party rings and sausage rolls, but proper, celebratory delicacies from around the continent.
If you’re lacking inspiration, look to a few recent winners. Italy comes to mind, of course — so why not whip up a selection of aperitivo? Pasta Evangelists have created a guide to throwing an Italian-themed Eurovision party feast, explaining that aperitivo “typically consists of a few drinks, antipasti and other light bites, known as stuzzichini, to whet the appetite for the main meal”. Finger-food snacks like bruschetta and focaccia are worthy options that are “best enjoyed with good friends, making it the ideal prelude to a night full of Eurovision revelry.”
Alternatively, if you want to make it a group effort, you could even assign each of your guests a different country. Some national dishes will be easier to source than others, mind — our commiserations to whoever gets strapped with Iceland and has to track down fermented shark.
Put on a sweepstake
If all the cooking hasn’t caused too many arguments, then a classic Eurovision sweepstake is sure to kick up a fuss ― a bit of healthy competition can make for a fun viewing experience. Permitting that your social circle is the betting kind, you could pull 25 entrants into a contest to select a country and hope that the rest of Europe likes your act.
When it comes to Eurovision success, there are no clear parameters — sometimes, voters are in the mood for a tender ballad about love and loss, while during other years, you might claim victory by performing heavy metal while dressed as monsters among a sea of pyrotechnics.
If you’re feeling lazy, there are even pre-made Eurovision sweepstake generators online — or you can just go traditional and throw names into a hat.
Dress to impress
Each year, Eurovision’s contestants put on an impressive display of national pride by dressing in weird and wonderful outfits. Some don glitzy disco fits that place them among a sequined tapestry of era-defining legends, while others, like 2012’s winner Loreen, hope to score the public’s affections by resembling a gender-swapped Wolverine. Wherever your personal style leads you, there’s a look to be made.
In fact, this idea could tie nicely into your sweepstake. You don’t want your party guests turning up wearing 12 different takes on the iconic ABBA boots (or do you?) so be sure to assign each guest a different country to wear in a socially responsible way. Rest assured, there’s no shortage of iconic Eurovision outfits that will avoid accusations of cultural insensitivity.
Play some party games
Once you’ve all compared outfits and broken the ice, it’s prime time for some Eurovision drinking games. Naturally, you could play the standard rounds of beer pong or ring of fire. However, if you’re looking for something a little more topical, there are plenty of watch-along rules you could add to your evening.
The appropriately named Eurovision Drinking Game, for example, lists a few simple guidelines to keep your guests sipping on, recommending that players drink every time one of the following occurs:
- Bad jokes
- Outfit changes
- Key changes
- Pyrotechnics
- Innuendos
- Crowd selfies
But we do need to add: you should always know your limits and drink responsibly. Given the high frequency of some of these events in the average Eurovision performance, you might be best off following these rules for just every other act. Or maybe just the first two.
Once the party atmosphere settles in, you’re sure to have a fun time no matter what you get up to — so sit back and enjoy the crazy campery of the Eurovision Song Contest, as hosted by the UK.
